Where’d You Go, October?

It feels like it was just days ago that I was watching a total eclipse. It was summer, we were on the edge of the high plains, and I had a drive back to California ahead of me.

Now it’s the end of October and I’ve left weeks and weeks and weeks go by without summoning the resolve to say anything about personal events and incidents that have intervened.

Partly that’s the product of what feels like an avalanche of catastrophic news. Leaving the frayed state of our national union aside — I wonder if I have heart or mind enough to really wrestle with all that — we have had hurricanes. And hurricanes. And fires. And an honest-to-goodness slaughter of innocents that — remember Stephen Paddock? — took only days to fade from the news.

What would I have said about September and October, if I had said something?

We went to Baltimore, and I got a chance to see good friends and hang out with family and see one of the best views of New York you will ever see.

We got a quarter-inch of rain.
We bought a new car.
We had dinner with friends.
I haven’t seen enough of friends and family.
We missed the worst of the wildfire smoke.
Our weather has finally turned cool and a pretty decent “winter” storm is due in this weekend.

To quote a poet I like, in October, I “lived the same life with the rest, the same old laughing, gnawing, sleeping,
Play’d the part that still looks back on the actor or actress,
The same old role, the role that is what we make it, as great as we like,
Or as small as we like, or both great and small.”

Bring on November. And rain. And more words.

3 Replies to “Where’d You Go, October?”

  1. Dear Dan,

    Not about this post, but about luminaries. How much sand would it take to fill 125 luminaries?

    I’d sure appreciate knowing

    –Bob

    1. Hi, Bob: I’m pretty sure one 90-pound bag of playground sand would be enough for 125 luminaria. We measure it out with empty cat food cans; one full can seems to be enough to sufficiently weigh down the bag so it won’t blow away/over if it’s a little windy.

      1. Dan,

        Many, many thanks. I hope you can see my display on 1800 block Delaware St.

        –Bob Williams

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